Door and sealing means therefor



May 22, 1945. w. F. OLIVER DOOR AND SEALING MEANS THEREFOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June '7, 1943 May 22, 1945. w. F. OLIVER DOOR AND SEALING MEANS THEREFOR Filed June 7, 1943 '2 Sheets-Sheet 2 VEN TOR Patented May 22, 1945 noon asp sumo MEANS runner-on Wallace F. Oliver, SouthBend, Ind., assignor to Bendix Home Appliances, Inc South Bend, 11111., a corporation of Delaware Application June '1, 194:, Serial No. 490,122

('01. eat-4o) 3Claims.

This invention relates to doors and sealing means therefor, and the structure used for illustration herein is designed for use as a clothes door for a washing machine.

In an automatic washing machine of the type described generally in United States Patent No. 2,165,884 issued July 11, 1939, and in United States Patent No. 2,173,603 issued September 19,

1939, a door is employed which has a glass or other transparent opening in the center thereof, This door is opened and closed'to provide an opening for access to the interior of the washing machine for the purpose of inserting and removing articles to be washed, and its glass center makes possible an observation of the washing operation. Itis necessary that the 'door he an effective sealing closure for the opening in the washing machine tub so that'therewill be no leakage of water therefrom. Various types of seals have been employed, generally formed of rubber or other resilient material and designed to contact the edge of the tub opening'on closing of the door. In addition to forming a sealfor the edge of the tub opening, however, it would be advantageous if the sealing means employed would serve as a seal for the contact made by the door on closing and also as an effective seal for the glass, thus making unnecessary an addition of positive sealing means to assurethat fluid will not leak around theglass. Also in previouslyused doors the detail designs have generally provided that a portion of the metal structure of the door be inside the glass and exposed to the water, thus requiring special treatment of the metal to prevent corrosion. It would be advantageous,

however, if the metallic parts of the door structure could be dry at all times.

It'is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a water-retaining or sealing means for a door employing a glass or a transparsurface of the door with the tub and will also to a washing machine of the type on. which it is designed to be used;

Figure 2 is a front view of the machine shown in Figure 1, also partly in section and showing the position of the door;

Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the hinge portion of the door shown in Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view through the door, taken on the line 4l of Figure 2, showing the sealing means together with the hinge and handle members of the door. I

Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a washing machine of the type described in the previouslymentioned'United States patents, NOS. 2,165,884

and 2,173,603, wherein a cylindrical tub i0 is supported with its principal axis in a substantially horizontal position. Inside this tub a cylinder II is mounted for rotation, the cylinder being smaller in size than the tub and supported for rotation at one end of the tub by a bearing II.

The cylinder II is rotated through a pulley l3 and a shaft ll by motor I! and belt It, all as more fully described in the aforementioned patents. The tub i0, as well as the cylinder H, has

a central opening i'l providing access to the interior of the cylinder for putting in and removing articles to be washed, and the tub II is necessarily provided with a door It. a

The structure of the door It is of. primary consideration herein and is shown in cross section in Figure 1, in front view in Figure 2 and in enlarged cross section in Figure 4; and an addient portion, which means willseal the contacting seal both surfaces of the glass in the door, both such seals being made positive by the pressure exerted by contact on the closing of the door.

It is a further object to provide a door structure wherein the metallic parts of the door are not subjected to direct contact of the fluid inside the container on which the door is used.

The above and other objects of the invention will appear more fully from the following detailed description and by reference to the accompany.- ing drawings forming a part hereof, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view, partly in section, showing thedoor of the present invention as applied;

tlonal view of the hinge portion of the door is shown in Figure 3. I

Referring to Figures 1, 2 and 4 and particularly to the enlarged cross section in Figure 4, an annular metal frame member l9 forms the shape of the door and is mounted to swing on a hinge ZIL'being secured in closed position by a latch 2i which is positioned at the opposite side of the door. The metal frame member is, as shown by the cross section, Figure 4, has an inwardly-bent portion terminating in a flange 19a, which is under and spaced from the outer wall. ofv the frame'member 19. The edge of the flange l9a is of a configuration such as to be larger in size than the opening which is to be closed, the flange being of a configuration similar to the edge of the opening. The hinge 20 comprises a bracket 22, shown in Figures 3 and 4, secured to the tub with an additional bracket 23 secured to the door frame I 8, the shape of the brackets 22 and" being such as to provide for a hinge pin Hand 9. spring 25. As shown in Figure 4, the bracket has slotted openings! therein, and a bracket portion 21' serves as a securing means between the hinge pin 24 and the bracket 22, actual securing of the hinge and door to the tub being efiected by screws 23 which extend through th slotted openings 23, thus providing an adjustment aiiorded by the slotted construction which allows the door to be adjusted in position toward or away from the tub. Also referring to Figure 4, latch 2| with its projecting lug 23, which is movable with a handle 33, is shaped to contact a bent lug 3|, said lug being secured to the tub through an angle bracket 32- and screws 33. Slots 34 are cut in the bent lug 3|, thus providing an adjustment which with the adjustment on the hinge allows the entire door to be adjusted toward and away from the tub.

A glass 35 or other transparent member forms the closure for the center portion of the door and is securedto the frame member IS. The glass 35 is of such shape that its edge conforms substantially to the shape of the edge of the flange Na, and a gasket 31 of resilient material such as rubber surrounds the edge of the glass 35 with a portion extending between the glass 35 and the flange I911. A metal strip 33, which is preferably of channel shape in cross section, is a retaming member and extends around the edges of the flange I31: and glass 35 outside the gasket. 31, thus'holding the glass to the annular frame 19. It is understood that the strip 33 and gasket 31 ,extend around the circumference of the glass 33 and flange l3a, the view of these parts in Figure 4 being a cross section. With the gasket 31 first put in place on the glass 33, the unit may then be assembled to the frame member I! by bending one side of the channel-shaped member 33 into contact with the projecting edge of the v rectangular-shaped gasket 33 which extends toward the mom hollow, as shown at 33 in Figure 4, the hollow portion allowing the gasket to com-'- press on contact with the annular edge 40 of the tub opening when the door is closed.

It is apparent, on inspection of Figure 4, that the gasket 33 will form a sealing closure for the annular edge 43 of the tub opening because of pressure exerted by the door on closing; and this same pressure exerted by compression of the entire inside projecting portion of the gasket 33 will exert further sealing pressure on the inside of glass 35, since a portion 33a of gasket 33 is so positioned as to exert such pressure on closing of the door. Also, because of the pressure of glass 33 on gasket 31, which also surrounds the glass and has its major portion on the opposite or outside of the glass, the same pressure exerted on closing of the door will act to make the outside seal of gasket 3! more positive.

With the previously-mentioned slotted adjustments 23 and 33 in hinge and latch connections respectively of the door to the tub it is possible to adjust the position of the door relative to the tub in such a way that pressure on closing of the door, exerted by compression of gasket 33 on edge 43 of the tub opening, will positively sealthe opening; furthermore, the pressure exerted against the glass will also create a more positive seal both by contact of gasket 33 inside the glass and gasket 31 outside the glass. It is also important that fluid from inside the tub does not contact the frame It directly, the glass 35 and gasket 33 being the only door parts having surfaces subjected to fluid from inside the tub.

Although the structure has been described with reference to a specific use, namely, that of application to a washing machine door, it is evident that with minor variations this closure might be used for many types of fluid-retaining closures or doors employing transparent central portions and might be used to seal various types of fluid containers which necessarily musthave doors which are continuously opened and closed and at times Jarred during operation. It is therefore intended that various modifications may be made in the structure within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a fluid-retainingclosure for an opening adapted to seal by contact with an edge of said opening, a frame member, an inwardly-bent portion of said frame member terminating in a flange under and spaced from the outer portion of said frame member and of a configuration to form a closure larger than said-opening, a transparent member having an edge shaped to conform sub-- 7 stantially to the shape of said flange, a resilient gasket surrounding an edge of said transparent member and having a portion thereof extendin between said flange and said transparent member, a retaining member securing said flange and said transparent member together with said resilient gasket in position thereunder, a second resilient gasket surrounding said flange, said retaining member, said first gasket and the edge of of to form a flange terminating and extending outwardly and spaced inwardly from the outer portion of said frame, a'transparent member having a circumferential edge conforming generally in shape to that of said flange, a resilient gasket member having extending portions surrounding said flange and the edge of 'said transparent member, one of said extending portions also extending between said transparent member and the edge of said opening, and means to hold said frame with pressure toward said opening whereby said' resilient gasket may be caused to seal at contact of said gasket with the edge of said opening and at contact of said gasket with said trans parent member.

3. In a fluid-retaining closure for an opening adapted to seal by contact of said closure with an edge of said opening, said closure comprising a frame, a flange secured to said frame and extending between said frame and said edge of said opening but terminating and extending outwardly and spaced inwardly from said frame, a transparent member having a circumferential edge conforming generally in shape to that of said flange positioned between said flange and the formed to contact also said edge of said opening, whereby only said transparent member and said resilient member are contacted by retained fluid and said frame is protected from contact with said fluid.

WALLACE F. OLIVER. 

